Head of Architecture

at  N Brown Group Plc

JOB DETAILS

Salary Competitive
LocationManchester
Discipline Digital Technology
Reference019402
We’re looking for a Head of Architecture to join our Digital Technology Team. Reporting to Chris, our Director of Technology, you’ll lead and inspire the group architecture team.
In this role you will have a unique opportunity to direct the transformation of our legacy technology estate into a cutting edge microservice driven digital retail organisation.
Joining the senior leadership team, you’ll be the voice of architecture, influencing and aligning with key stakeholders on the road-map, best practice and compliance, strategic initiatives and market and environmental trends.

What will you do as a Head of Architecture at N Brown?

• Shape enterprise-wide architecture and processes to embed the strategic application of change across the business.
• Lead the creation and review of a systems capability strategy that meets the strategic requirements of the business and ensure the buy-in of all key stakeholders.
• Capture and prioritise market and environmental technology trends, business strategies and objectives, and identify the business benefits of alternative strategies.
• Lead a practise of enterprise and solution architects, empower colleagues to drive positive change and encourage a community of continuous learning.
• Seek out, identify, propose, and initiate capability improvement activities within the organisation.
• Set strategies, policies, standards and practices to ensure compliance between business strategies, technology strategies, and enterprise transformation activities.
• Shape technology roadmaps that align organisational plans with emerging technology solutions.
• Prioritise areas for quality improvement by considering strategy, business objectives and results from internal and external audits.
• Set policies, standards, and guidelines for how the organisation conducts strategy development and planning.
• Champion and lead development of an organisational knowledge management approach. Share different approaches for knowledge sharing across communities of practice, business units, and networks.
• Lead substantial improvement programmes. Plan and manage the evaluation or assessment of organisational capabilities. Selects frameworks, approaches and techniques for use.

WHAT SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE WILL YOU HAVE?

• Extensive architecture experience
• Experience of transforming from legacy architecture to microservices
• TOGAF and Archimate are both desirable but not essential
• BCS Enterprise Certificate in Architecture would be desirable but not essential
• Experience of cloud technologies: AWS would be ideal
• Experience in Retail and/or Financial Services
• Ability to manage and influence a wide range of key stakeholders
• Experienced Leader able to lead others through organisational and technology change
• ERP experience is preferable

N BROWN – WHO WE ARE AND WHY WORK FOR US?

At N Brown, we’re committed to building a diverse workforce and creating an inclusive environment that values equality for all. Our vision is that by ‘championing inclusion, we’ll become the most loved and trusted fashion retailer’. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging are, therefore, at the heart of our culture.
We’re a forward-thinking digital retailer with a financial services proposition to be proud of. We’re customer-obsessed, serving them through three core brands: JD Williams, Simply Be, and Jacamo. We’re experienced, with over 160 years of trading under our belt. We’re inclusive, as we believe in fashion without boundaries; and we’re sustainable, striving to make as little impact on the planet as possible.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU APPLY TO A ROLE AT N BROWN?

As soon as we receive your application, we’ll send you an email to let you know. We always aim to come back to you as soon as possible with an update and we really appreciate you taking the time to apply for a role with us. Good luck!

What will you do as a Head of Architecture at N Brown?

• Shape enterprise-wide architecture and processes to embed the strategic application of change across the business.
• Lead the creation and review of a systems capability strategy that meets the strategic requirements of the business and ensure the buy-in of all key stakeholders.
• Capture and prioritise market and environmental technology trends, business strategies and objectives, and identify the business benefits of alternative strategies.
• Lead a practise of enterprise and solution architects, empower colleagues to drive positive change and encourage a community of continuous learning.
• Seek out, identify, propose, and initiate capability improvement activities within the organisation.
• Set strategies, policies, standards and practices to ensure compliance between business strategies, technology strategies, and enterprise transformation activities.
• Shape technology roadmaps that align organisational plans with emerging technology solutions.
• Prioritise areas for quality improvement by considering strategy, business objectives and results from internal and external audits.
• Set policies, standards, and guidelines for how the organisation conducts strategy development and planning.
• Champion and lead development of an organisational knowledge management approach. Share different approaches for knowledge sharing across communities of practice, business units, and networks.
• Lead substantial improvement programmes. Plan and manage the evaluation or assessment of organisational capabilities. Selects frameworks, approaches and techniques for use